Rhythm Is Gonna Get You
Holding Your Breath
The women of ancient Greece attempted to hold their breath during sex. Why? Because when they were done (and seemingly had color drain back into their face) they would sit with their knees bent so they could sneeze to expel semen. Duh. I mean, it's so obvious.
Beaver Testicles
If you have an aversion to beavers, then hopefully you weren’t having sex in 16th century Canada. It was there that they apparently believed that the “testicles of small furry animals were key to pregnancy prevention.” You know, when mixed with moonshine. The beaver testicles were ground up into a fine powder and made into a cocktail with the strong alcohol and then consumed. Orally. Cheers.
Coca-Cola
You just know Pepsi is loving this one. In the 1950s and '60s, Coke was not just a popular refreshment but also a spermicide for a select group of, um, very smart people? An experiment allegedly showed that Coke killed the sperm in under a minute. Also? “The classic bottle provided a ‘shake and shoot’ applicator,” according to TheAwl.com. No comment. Because, really, what is there to say?
Solid Objects
It’s a practice that dates back to pre-industrial societies, especially in Africa, according to Yale.edu. Back then women used “plugs of chopped grass or cloth.” Over in Japan, the prostitutes used balls of bamboo tissue paper, while in the Middle Ages good old wooden pessaries were used as pregnancy prevention tools.
Pig Condom
Condoms date back much further than the current latex form. But the oldest known condom in existence was found in Sweden and is believed to be just over 370 years old. And made out of pig intestine. The manual it was found with suggests that users "immerse the condom in warm milk prior to its use to avoid diseases.” Mmm. You'll definitely be conjuring up that image the next time you have a midnight snack.
Donkey's Milk
It has long been common for foreign objects to be inserted into the vaginal canal in an effort to avoid pregnancy, but some are weirder than others. In an Egyptian medical papyrus known as Ebers, dating back to 1550 BC, a 20-meter-long scroll had writing on it that said a pessary soaked in donkey’s milk was a “notable method of preventing pregnancy among ancient Egyptian women.” Also used? A “resinous gum-like material to smear over the cervix as a barrier method. The Ebers papyrus also mentioned pessaries made of “dung and fermented leaves of the acacia tree.” The rhythm method never sounded so good, yes?
